On the surface, Jeff Nettles’ RBI single off the base of the left-field fence in the ninth inning Wednesday night was nothing more than a footnote in a seven-run loss for the Somerset Patriots.

But the truth is that the well-struck baseball – which sounded like a home run off the bat but resulted in his fourth single – was an example of the good and bad of Nettles’ season, and perhaps will serve as the starting point for another trademark late-season surge from the traditionally streak hitter.

Nettles, who turned 34 last week, has seen his batting average (.248) and power numbers (eight home runs) dip to the nadir of the 10 seasons since he became an everyday third baseman in 2003. And yet he remains an effective run producer as the only member of the Patriots the ranking in the Atlantic League’s Top 30 in RBI (67).

“I’m just trying to get hits right now,” Nettles said. “You’ve got to know when guys are on base that you’ve got to get them in. I don’t think about home runs. I’m going up there trying to drive runs in.”

The league’s all-time RBI leader and holder of second place in the doubles and home runs categories has changed his method for adding to the scoreboard – he has a team-high six sacrifice flies and an uncharacteristically low number of extra-base hits – even if he hasn’t altered his approach.

“Home runs are tough to hit,” Nettles said. “I don’t want to say I never considered myself a power hitter because some of the numbers show that I am. But I’m not doing anything different with my swing now.”

Nettles is hitting .289 with runners on base and .294 with runners in scoring position, though the majority of his clutch hits are singles. His 22 multi-hit games are good for second on the team.

“I know he’s hitting in the .240s but the reason I like having him up there is he is getting base hits with two outs, which he has always done even when he hit .280 with 20 dingers,” manager Sparky Lyle said. “He hits the ball where it’s pitched instead of trying to hit the ball out when he gets two strikes on him.”

Unlike in years past, when he hit in front of feared sluggers Josh Pressley, Matt Hagen and Ryan Radmanovich, Nettles, who was tied for the league lead with 50 RBI at the All-Star break, batted sixth in the lineup for most of August after being flip-flopped with the struggling Yunesky Sanchez.

“In the first half I wasn’t getting much to hit and I haven’t had the kind of protection that I’ve had in the past,” Nettles said. “The chances haven’t been as fruitful in the second half. Even though I’m hitting in the .240s, a lot of pitchers are going to go on what I’ve done in the past.”

Once thought to be a lock to be the all-time home run king by season’s end, Nettles now appears unlikely to hit the six needed to catch Glenn Murray. While he admitted it was an individual goal not long ago, he says his focus is elsewhere.

“Until I get to the time when I’ve got to hit one to tie or get the record, it’s not going to be in the front of my brain,” Nettles said. “I’m trying to help us win games.”

The two-time Championship Series Most Valuable Player has a postseason reputation to uphold, too.

“This is usually a time when the Patriots have some something on the line,” Nettles said. “I’ve always liked the end of the halves because there is always a little something added to play for.”